We may be the Twin Cities, but Minneapolis and St. Paul are defined by our differences as well as similarities. Minneapolis is the poster child of urban cool — hell-bent to best Portland and Seattle as the hippest and most progressive city west of Madison. St. Paul has Garrison Keilor, and the St. Paul Saints. And with its Winter Carnival it has all the cool it needs.

Both cities are near the top in rankings of most livable cities and are nationally recognized for strong cultures of civic participation. Yet — and here is the bad news — both Minneapolis and St. Paul also have among the nation’s highest rates of racial disparities. What is city government doing to ensure that the good life in our Twin Towns can be shared by all?

Joining TruthToTell to discuss these and other issues are first -erm city council members Alondra Cano, who represents the 9th Ward in Minneapolis and St. Paul’s 1st Ward alderman, Dai Thao.

In the sixth edition of the TruthToTell:Community Connections Series*, we look to the youth.TruthToTell's Michelle Alimoradi and special guest RayLynn Prokasky will host a conversation at St Paul's Avalon Charter School on Wednesday, July 10 about how to help youth help themselves. In this era of rapidly changing technology, widening access to information, an unsure economic future, and drastically changing ethnic and racial demographics, is it time to start radically rethinking our systems for preparing and supporting young people? Do we rely on test scores and statistics to tell us what's wrong? Or should we go straight to the source and ask youth what they want to achieve? Local researchers, including the McKnight foundation’s recent spin-off Youthprise, are saying that perhaps it's a mix of both, but this Wednesday night, we'll talk to members of the community, particularly the younger Twin Cities residents, find out what they think.

Our panelists, speaking from their various experience levels of working with youth, researching youth habits, or being engaged in their communities as a young person.

Vested community members of all ages are welcome to attend this open forum discussion as we help youth define the terms of their own success, discuss what's working, and what barriers still exist for youth struggling to achieve their goals. TTT has teamed up with St. Paul Parks & Recreation's Youth Job Corps program, Minneapolis Step-Up, Youthprise, St. Paul Sprockets, The Center for Democracy and Citizenship at Augsburg College, Youth Express, and Cookie Cart as well as our production partners St. Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN) and KFAI Fresh Air Radio to bring you this special discussion.

Our panelists, speaking from their various experience levels of working with youth, researching youth habits, or being engaged in their communities as a young person.

On-air guests:

Caritza Mariani- Caritza directs youth work for the Center for Democracy and Citizenship at Augsburg College.

Jeron Mariani- Jeron Mariani is a 2013 graduate of Saint Paul Academy, a Board Member and Leadership Team member of Youthrive, a youth leadership-based nonprofit organization that focuses on peace-building skills following the vision of Nobel Peace Laureates.

Rhiannon Magee- Rhiannon is an entering sophomore at Avalon High School, an active member of the student congress, and active volunteer in her community serving at the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota (DSAM) and the AFS study abroad program.

Invited: Marcus Pope- Director or Strategic Outreach and Initiatives for Youthprise. Marcus has a rich background in nonprofit management, youth development and community outreach.

Caritza Mariani- Caritza directs youth work for the Center for Democracy and Citizenship at Augsburg College.

Jeron Mariani- Jeron Mariani is a 2013 graduate of Saint Paul Academy, a Board Member and Leadership Team member of Youthrive, a youth leadership-based nonprofit organization that focuses on peace-building skills following the vision of Nobel Peace Laureates.

Rhiannon Magee- Rhiannon is an entering sophomore at Avalon High School, an active member of the student congress, and active volunteer in her community serving at the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota (DSAM) and the AFS study abroad program.

Invited: Marcus Pope- Director or Strategic Outreach and Initiatives for Youthprise. Marcus has a rich background in nonprofit management, youth development and community outreach.

*TruthToTell: Community Connections is made possible by a generous grant from the Bush Foundation, which has enabled TruthToTell to partner with KFAI community radio, St. Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN), and selected community partners to present these discussions and dialogues on important issues like education, the environment, health care, politics and elections, transportation, Native concerns, youth issues and more, into the key communities affected by these respective topics for radio, television and online distribution.

CivicMedia-Minnesota is a 501c3 non-profit production company based in St. Paul, Minnesota, created to bring civic and media literacy to the Twin Cities region and Minnesota, informing, educating and empowering residents and students in local, state and regional public affairs and to amplify the voices of concerned communities on key issues facing them every day. CMM’s main goal is to engage citizens by helping them understand issues of governance and public policy, critique media coverage of critical policy matters, encourage public discourse and help people take collective action to resolve problems and influence public policy. More information and past show archives can be found at www.truthtotell.org.

Our panelists, speaking from their various experience levels of working with youth, researching youth habits, or being engaged in their communities as a young person.Caritza Mariani- Caritza directs youth work for the Center for Democracy and Citizenship at Augsburg College.Jeron Mariani- Jeron Mariani is a 2013 graduate of Saint Paul Academy, a Board Member and Leadership Team member of Youthrive, a youth leadership-based nonprofit organization that focuses on peace-building skills following the vision of Nobel Peace Laureates.Rhiannon Magee- Rhiannon is an entering sophomore at Avalon High School, an active member of the student congress, and active volunteer in her community serving at the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota (DSAM) and the AFS study abroad program.Invited: Marcus Pope- Director or Strategic Outreach and Initiatives for Youthprise. Marcus has a rich background in nonprofit management, youth development and community outreach.

In the sixth edition of the TruthToTell:Community Connections Series*, we look to the youth.TruthToTell's Michelle Alimoradi and special guest RayLynn Prokasky will host a conversation at St Paul's Avalon Charter School on Wednesday, July 10 about how to help youth help themselves. In this era of rapidly changing technology, widening access to information, an unsure economic future, and drastically changing ethnic and racial demographics, is it time to start radically rethinking our systems for preparing and supporting young people? Do we rely on test scores and statistics to tell us what's wrong? Or should we go straight to the source and ask youth what they want to achieve? Local researchers, including the McKnight foundation’s recent spin-off Youthprise, are saying that perhaps it's a mix of both, but this Wednesday night, we'll talk to members of the community, particularly the younger Twin Cities residents, find out what they think.

Our panelists, speaking from their various experience levels of working with youth, researching youth habits, or being engaged in their communities as a young person.

Vested community members of all ages are welcome to attend this open forum discussion as we help youth define the terms of their own success, discuss what's working, and what barriers still exist for youth struggling to achieve their goals. TTT has teamed up with St. Paul Parks & Recreation's Youth Job Corps program, Minneapolis Step-Up, Youthprise, St. Paul Sprockets, The Center for Democracy and Citizenship at Augsburg College, Youth Express, and Cookie Cart as well as our production partners St. Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN) and KFAI Fresh Air Radio to bring you this special discussion.

Our panelists, speaking from their various experience levels of working with youth, researching youth habits, or being engaged in their communities as a young person.

Our panelists, speaking from their various experience levels of working with youth, researching youth habits, or being engaged in their communities as a young person.

This is the first edition of the TruthToTell: Community Connections series, a 12 episode series of special TruthToTell programs looking at key issues facing various communities around the Twin Cities Metro and across Minnesota.